Good News and Bad News (7 Jun 2006)
In a stunning turn of events, Kiko Lake's Holbie Pinnock suffered a terrible injury around 4:30 this afternoon. Pinnock, an inexperienced young forward, was only added to the lineup after starter Helmo Timm had, herself, gone down with an injury around the end of league matches. Apparently, Pinnock's injury occurred when a strap on the sling of Kiko Lake's Relle Felson broke just as he was shooting the ball. The broken strap caused the Jetsam's sling to go hurling into the air, striking young Pinnock in the back of the head and sending him sprawling to the ground. Tests conducted in the trainer's room revealed that Pinnock was suffering from nausea, blurred vision, and recurring headaches, sidelining him for the foreseeable future. With her team facing the prospect of having to play shorthanded for the rest of the tournament (almost certainly ending their hopes of winning the Altador Cup), forward Helmo Timm pleaded with the team doctor and coaching staff for a shot at returning ahead of schedule. Despite their initial protests, the brave Peophin finally convinced Kiko Lake's staff to give her a chance. Sporting a cast on her mending right foreleg, Timm ran through some light contact drills and showed an encouraging lack of hesitation in forechecking and going after loose balls. Helmo only has a few practices left to convince the team that she's ready to join the lineup for Kiko Lake's first round match this weekend. As of this writing, though, her chances of getting the start are certainly looking better than anyone would've expected this time last week.